Thursday, April 28, 2011

Another poetry book for (young) teens

I found this book in my arsenal and realized that I have never read it.

Locomtion by Jacqueline Woodson turned out to be really good! Another novel told in poetry, the protagonist is a young, African-American boy who has lost both of his parents and is trying to find his sense of family among those people he has -- both blood and not. And he uses poetry to express himself believe it or not.

The novel has a clear young voice (Lonnie is 11) but some fantastic insight that struck me. I really identified with his teacher, Ms. Marcus because she was written so well also but it made me think about all those kids in public school and how so many are "typecast" so to speak in their roles. How many of them can go above and beyond what society expects of them?

And I loved the focus on family and what it meant to this young man. And even though the book ends before you know what happens to him, you really get the sense that he'll be ok, that he'll be a success.

What is this?

Even though I am now a stay-at-home mom, I can't stop reading, writing, and lesson planning! My brain was permanently wired from years of teaching middle and high school history and English. I continue to be inspired by literature and want to talk about it with others. Every now and then, I have a lightbulb worth sharing -- and sometimes it's a lemonade disaster!